Shadows
by Lyndalion16
Summary: ONESHOT. Just some thoughts Kagome's daughter has on a special night.


(NOTE): Just so you know, I've never written for Inuyasha before. (I've only just discovered it about 2 weeks ago, but I've been watching and researching it enough hopefully to at least do a one shot.) I hope that the narration of the story gives you enough hints as to what's happened. What I mean by that is...oh, well, you'll see.

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Even though it's no where near my bed time, I sit patiently in my room, waiting eagerly for the sun to finally set. I clench the tiny braid in my hand even tighter while I stare at the sun as if glaring at it will make it set faster. For four of the sixteen years of my life, I've waited all month long for these nights, the night when something very special happens. Something only my mother and I know about. 

My mother's name is Kagome and my father's is Hojo. I, myself, bear the name of Hikari. I've been told I greatly resemble my mother and I do, but I still find it a little strange that I look nothing like my father. My little brother however, who is ten, looks exactly like him, so I consider it a fair trade off. His name is Akitoki. My mother named him this because she said it was the name of one of Papa's ancestors. When we asked of how she knew this, she smiled and told us that she had once known a girl in high school who had traveled to the past and met him once.

Mama always tells wonderful stories about the Feudal Era, the time when demons roamed the earth. She especially loved telling about her friend (Mama called her Kasumi), a young girl from modern Japan, and her group of friends from that time period, particularly a certain half demon by the name of Inuyasha. Her other friends included a monk with a wind tunnel in his right hand (who I later found out to be lecherous, but loved none the less) named Miroku, a demon slayer named Sango, Sango's pet demon Kirara, and a young fox demon named Shippo.

Although I love every part of each one of the stories, my favorites are the ones which show the romantic relationship between Kasumi and Inuyasha. I always cheer when Inuyasha saves Kasumi, giggle whenever Kasumi 'sits' him, and scowl when a wolf demon named Koga tries to hit on Kasumi. Akitoki, naturally, just likes every story with a battle in it. To make the stories appropriate for him, Mama told him that Miroku would often ask women to be his girlfriend and always try to kiss Sango. I found out the truth eventually though, when I became older, so every time Miroku would say "Will you be my girlfriend?" I would replace it with "Will you bare my child?" and when he would "try to kiss Sango" I knew he really would "try to grope her ass" and I would giggle. Papa just always sits and listens, interested, but I can't tell which stories likes best.

Papa would always joke that Mama must've really loved to talk with Kasumi because she told her stories in great detail. Akitoki, who strongly believes these stories are real, asked Papa if he knew Kasumi as well, since he had also known Mama in high school. Papa would laugh and say "Of course I did, but your mother knew her much better then I did." He would then kiss Mama which would make Akitoki say "Eeeewwww."

Papa and Mama had been married at seventeen and had had me immediately afterwards. I know my parents love each other very much, but it seems that Papa loves Mama a lot more than she loves him. Her eyes won't light up the way his does whenthey see each other walk into the room, and when they cuddle, Papa is always the one to put his arms around her. I would always notice this, and it made me feel slightly uncomfortable.

So one day, when I was twelve, I asked Mama if she loved Papa, and she smiled and said "Hikari, I will always love your father. Always." when she said this, I saw nothing but sincerity in her eyes and I knew she was telling the truth. But this was also the very same look she had when she told us her stories. I then asked "Mama, these stories you tell, are they really...real?" Mama looked at me a while before she gestured for me to come with her and led me into her bedroom. As we walked in, she shut the door behind her, walked over to her bedside able, and pulled out a drawer. As soon as she had what she was looking for, she took it out and slide the door back in as I looked at what she was now holding. It was a small, thin wooden box and she gently handed it to me.

"Open it."said Mama "But if you take it out, be very gentle with it, OK?" I nodded as I opened the box and gasped at what I saw. Inside was a long, thin braid of beautiful silver hair, which was tied at the ends with three different colored hairs, one black, one dark brown, and one reddish brown. "They are real." said Mama as I looked back up at her "The stories. The were real. You see, eventually, Kasumi, who was almost seventeen at this time and her friends defeated Naraku and made the Shikon Jewel whole again. During this time, Kasumi and Inuyasha ha become closer than ever, but they both had important decisions to make. If he should become a full demon and if she should return to modern times." Mama was silent for a moment.

"And" I asked eagerly "What did they choose.?"

"Kasumi chose to come back." Mama said softly "After Naraku's death, the portal would only stay open for a few more days. Kasumi knew she had to return, no matter how much she wanted to stay with her friends, she had to return. So her friends all gave her some their hair to remember them by." I sighed, extremely disappointed that she had chosen to return rather than stayed with the ones she loved.

"What happened to her?" Mama sighed

"She's dead. A few days after she left the love of her life, she died. These hairs are the only thing left of her."

"And Inuyasha?" I asked as I felt tears coming to my eyes "Did he become a full demon? Do you know?" Mama smiled thoughtfully, although she herself looked almost ready to cry.

"I don't think so. I think he stayed a half demon."

"Why do you think that?" Mama pointed to the box in my hands.

"Just keep that with you and look at it every night until...well, you'll know when you see it, and then you'll see why." As she started to leave the room, I asked

"Mama? What about the others? Do you know what happened to them?" Mama thought for a moment.

"Well, I know that before she left, Sango and Miroku had finally confessed their true, caring feelings for each other, so at least they, perhaps, lived happily ever after." As Mama opened the door and began to walk out she said softly "But you know, Inuyasha didn't just give her his hair." Mama turned to look at me straight in the eyes "He also left her with something far more precious." Before I could question her further, she left the room.

I did as she told me and watched the hair every night, until finally, one night, a night like this one will be, something very special happened. I held my breath and looked excitedly down at the braid as the sun sets at last. I laugh softly as the braid in my hand begins to darken from a shiny silver to an inky black. I now know how Mama knows that he stayed a half demon. I also know who 'Kasumi' really is and why I look nothing like my 'father'. I've done the math, I've read the signs, and I'm sure of it. I just continue to stare down at the now black braid in my hand, and I think of my hair and my mother's hair. _All dark_ I think _All black. Like the sky during a new moon night. Like shadows. Like the shadows of my mother's beloved friends whom she will never see again. Like the shadow of my father._

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_(NOTE): Like it? Hate it? Tell me what you think! (But please, if you really didn't like it, then please, please, PLEASE be gentle with me. Remember, I've only known about Inuyasha for a couple of weeks so I'm not exactly an expert. In fact, I don't even have cable, so a friend graciously tapes it for me so I can watch it :P) 


End file.
